Men’s feet shouldn’t be seen in public under any circumstance that doesn’t involve a beach or body of water, and barefoot shoes shouldn’t look like the stuff of nightmares. Vivobarefoot has a barefoot shoe for every occasion, and none of their styles will get you exiled from civilized society.

The Scott is a men’s ultralight, weatherproof, barefoot, brown leather boot that actually looks good, so in the world of men’s shoes it’s a three-horned unicorn. We took the Scott to brunch, through the rain, and on many a dog walk in winter storm Stella with no issues, leaks, or cold feet.

As someone who has never exercised barefoot, or worn toe shoes (obviously) or barefoot shoes, I was expecting soreness and a steeper learning curve testing the Scott, but most of the time I just forget they were different than any other shoe. The advantages of being able to feel the ground become really apparent when navigating New York City’s disgusting and treacherous snow banks.

We also called in the Primus Lux for testing, but we’ll need it to get a bit warmer outside before going sockless.